Bendigo Stadium earns Sporting Club of the Year tag

The opportunities Bendigo Stadium provides for central Victorians to play and watch top quality sport has helped it win a state award.

The opportunities Bendigo Stadium provides for central Victorians to play and watch top quality sport has helped it win a state award.

Bendigo Stadium was named Sporting Club of the Year at a function at the Grand Hyatt Ballroom in Melbourne last week, taking the award ahead of the likes of Essendon Football Club.

The awards didn’t end there either, with the Stadium’s general manager Jason Wallace taking home the prestigious Club Manager of the Year.

In the past year, Bendigo Stadium has showcased many top-level sporting events, including ANZ Championship netball, the Australian Opals basketball team against Brazil in the lead-up to the London Olympics and World Series Snooker.

Junior volleyball national championships have been played at the Stadium, which will also host international table tennis for the first time next year.

The venue is also the home for the Bendigo Bank Spirit and Braves basketball teams.

While Bendigo Stadium caters for elite sportspeople, the opportunities for members of the community to play sport also helped it win the award, judges said.

Bendigo’s domestic basketball competition has jumped to a record-breaking 390 teams playing this summer, while the Bendigo Volleyball Association has double the membership of any other regional centre.